Tobacco Less Appealing to Youth

The Global Adult Tobacco Survey (GATS) 2016-17 revealed an overall decline in the number of tobacco users in India in the past seven years, especially among the 15-24 age group.

The survey found that over 61.9% adults thought of quitting cigarettes, 53.8% thought of quitting bidi, and 46.2% thought of quitting smokeless tobacco because of the warnings on tobacco products. Furthermore, it was found that the prevalence of tobacco use has decreased by 6%, from 34.6% in 2009-10 to 28.6% in 2016-17. The prevalence of tobacco use among the 15-24 age group has reduced from 18.4% in 2009-10 to 12.4% in 2016-17.

Dr. Pankaj Chaturvedi, an oncologist at Tata Memorial Hospital Mumbai said, “A 6% reduction wasn’t easy for a large country like India. Gutka and pan masala were increasingly attracting the youth, but results indicate that fewer kids are now picking up the habit.”

GATS was conducted by the Union Health Ministry with technical assistance from the World Health Organization (WHO), and the US Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). It was conducted in all 30 states of India and two union territories. A total of 74,037 individuals were interviewed between August 2016 and February 2017. The first GATS in India was conducted in 2009-10.